


Plus One

by Heavenli24



Category: Veronica Mars (Movie 2014), Veronica Mars (TV), Veronica Mars - All Media Types
Genre: Alternate Universe, F/M, Fake Dating, High School Reunion, LoVe AU Week 2020, lv au week 2020
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-03-25
Updated: 2020-03-25
Packaged: 2021-03-01 01:33:36
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,384
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23316925
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Heavenli24/pseuds/Heavenli24
Summary: It's Veronica's 10-year high school reunion and Logan is her plus one. For LV AU Week 2020 Day 4: Fake Dating
Relationships: Logan Echolls/Veronica Mars
Comments: 30
Kudos: 108
Collections: LV AU WEEK 2020





	Plus One

**Author's Note:**

> Just a short little last-minute story :). This one is unbeta'd as I only started writing it about 24 hours ago, but I wanted to post it today for Day 4.

Logan Echolls lifts his beer bottle to his lips and takes a swig as he leans back against the makeshift bar, resting one elbow on the counter. His gaze drifts across the packed hotel ballroom, and then up at the large banner hanging on the wall, proclaiming: "Neptune High Class of 2006 Ten-Year Reunion".

With a slight roll of his eyes, he shakes his head, then takes another swig of beer.

_Why am I even here? I didn't even attend Neptune High._

A familiar blonde head comes into view from across the dancefloor, accompanied by sparkling blue eyes and a wide grin as she waves at him, and he smiles and gives a small wave back.

_Ah, yes. That's why. Veronica Mars._

His perky and very persuasive roommate had dragged him here as her 'Plus One', under the guise that she needed him to act as a buffer between herself and the people she went to high school with. His immediate reaction had been to wonder why on Earth she would even want to go, considering high school hadn't been a great experience for her, but when she gave him her best pleading, puppy-dog look, he just couldn't say no.

Oh, who was he kidding? He could never say no to her.

"So, uh, you're here with Veronica Mars?" comes a voice to his left.

Logan turns his head to see a dark-haired man of about his height leaning on the bar beside him.

He nods. "I am."

The guy holds out his hand. "Duncan Kane."

_Ah, so this is the infamous high school ex-boyfriend._

"Logan," he replies, deliberately leaving off his last name as he shakes Duncan's hand.

"So, uh, you guys must be serious if she managed to drag you to this," Duncan says then.

"Oh." Logan blinks; he had no idea Veronica was gonna tell people they're a couple. "Uh, well, you know, we've been living together for a while now."

Duncan's eyebrows rise. "You guys live together? Wow."

"You seem surprised," says Logan, unsure where this is going.

"Well…" Duncan shrugs. "It's just… Veronica was never really one for, you know, settling down. Committing."

Logan shrugs back. "Guess she just found the right person, then."

Before Duncan can say anything further, Veronica catches his eye from the dancefloor and beckons to him. Logan drains the last of his beer and places it down on the bar counter, turning to Duncan.

"Excuse me," he tells the other man. "I'm being summoned."

He makes his way through the small crowd, coming to a stop in front of Veronica, who grabs his arm and drags him further onto the dancefloor.

"You need to dance with me."

"I do?" Logan follows, albeit somewhat grudgingly.

"Yes, you do," she insists, turning her back to him as she sways to the music, before tossing over her shoulder, "Come on, Echolls, live a little."

Reluctantly, Logan starts to move with her, gently placing his hands on her hips, while trying not to stare at her ass in the tight, red dress she's wearing. She looks incredible tonight.

He's just getting into the swing of it when the upbeat song ends and switches to something a slower. Veronica turns to face him, casually slinging her arms around his shoulders as he adjusts his grip on her hips.

"Having fun?" she asks with a grin.

"I'm not sure I'd go that far," he replies with a grimace.

"Come on, it's not that bad."

Logan frowns. "Weren't you the one who didn't even want to come to this thing?"

She shrugs. "Maybe I changed my mind."

"I met Duncan," he says next. "At the bar."

"Oh, yeah?" She shoots a quick glance in that direction.

"Yeah." He nods. "Any idea why he seems to think we're a couple?"

She looks down guiltily. "I might have told a few people I was bringing my boyfriend. Which, I mean, wasn't actually a lie at the time."

He suppresses a smirk, having already figured that one out. "And you didn't think to inform _me_ of that little detail?"

"Well, you know…" She shrugs. "We've been each other's 'dates' for things a few times now; I figured it wasn't really any different."

"Yeah, but accompanying me to a formal Navy dinner where no one knows you and they don't even care whether we're a couple or not isn't exactly the same as you bringing me to your high school reunion so you can show off your 'boyfriend'."

She winces. "I should have told you, I know. It just slipped my mind with everything else going on."

"So, what's our cover story?" he asks, having already accepted this is happening. "You know, how we met, how long we've been together… all that?"

"How about we just keep things as close to the truth as we can," she suggests. "We met at Stanford, became good friends, parted ways when you joined the Navy after graduation and I went to Columbia Law. Then we reconnected a couple of years ago, and have been together ever since, living in Fresno."

It's pretty much the truth anyway, bar the 'being together' part. Like he told Duncan, they do live together, but as platonic roommates and not a romantic couple.

"Okay." Logan nods in agreement. "Sounds simple enough."

They focus back on the music, Veronica relaxing against him, her arms tightening around his neck as she rests her head on his chest. In return, Logan slides his arms around her waist tugging her a little closer and marvelling at the feel of her pressed against him.

It's not the first time they've danced together, but it is the first time they've danced together since he discovered he has feelings for her. They've been friends, best friends actually, for about nine years now, and their relationship has always been platonic…that is, until about six months ago, when Veronica started dating this guy, John, from her law firm. She'd barely dated at all in the year-and-a-half they'd been roommates, too busy focusing on work and her career, but one day, out of the blue, she announced she had met someone, and Logan found himself unexpectedly dealing with all these feelings he didn't even know he had.

She and John split up a couple of weeks ago, hence the somewhat last-minute request for Logan to be her 'plus one' tonight, and the fact that she's single again feels like a weight has been lifted from Logan's chest. Only problem is, he doesn't know what to do about said new feelings.

Logan glances around the room in an attempt to take his mind off the fact that Veronica's warm body is pressing against his as they sway together. He frowns when he notices a blonde woman staring daggers at them from across the room.

"Uh, who's that?" He nudges Veronica, giving a subtle nod in the woman's direction when she looks up at him in question.

Veronica sneaks a peek, her lips curling up in a sneer when she sees the woman.

" _That_ ," she says, "is Madison Sinclair."

"The girl who made your life hell Junior and Senior Year?"

"The one and only."

"Wow, if looks could kill…" Logan muses.

"Believe me, the feeling is mutual."

She narrows her eyes at Madison and Logan glances at her again, confused by the disbelieving look on the other woman's face.

"What does she look so surprised about?"

"Oh, she's probably just wondering why on Earth a fine specimen like yourself is wasting your time with a loser like me." Veronica tries to keep her tone airy, but Logan can see right through her.

"Veronica…"

"Hey…" She turns her attention to him again. "What do you say we give her a show?"

"What do you mea—?"

Before he can even finish the sentence, she's rising up on her tiptoes, her hands cupping his neck as her mouth covers his. He stiffens in surprise, unsure how to react. Sure, he's dreamed of kissing Veronica dozens of times now, but he never actually expected it to happen… and especially not in these circumstances.

Belatedly realising he needs to respond, he springs into action, his arms tightening around her, pulling her close as he kisses her back… and it's everything he thought it would be. She tastes like a mixture of the Prosecco she was sipping and the chocolate mint thins she snuck from the snack table earlier, and the scent of her shampoo combined with her favourite perfume invades his senses. He feels lightheaded as his body reacts to her, and when her tongue darts out, running along his bottom lip, the touch sends tingles shooting down his spine.

All too soon, it's over. She pulls back, lowering her heels and stepping away from him, blinking as she catches her breath, and Logan almost sighs with disappointment at the loss of warmth from her body.

"Sorry," she says quickly. "That got a bit… out of hand."

Logan can only stare down at her in a mixture of amazement and arousal.

"I shouldn't have… I should have asked you first," she's babbling nervously now, but Logan's still in a daze. "Forgive me?"

He swallows harshly, unable to form words, his entire body humming.

"Logan? You okay?"

"Veronica…" he finally manages, his voice breaking slightly on her name.

She finally seems to realise he's staring down at her intently and she frowns. "What?"

"I…uh…" He can't quite figure out what to say. "Can, um… can we talk?"

"Now?" She looks puzzled.

"Yeah." He nods. "Please?"

"Okay," she agrees, tilting her head towards the door as she starts to weave through the crowd.

They head out into the hotel lobby and Veronica turns to him. "All right, what's up?"

Logan glances around at the various people milling about, then shakes his head. "Not here. Let's go up to the room."

Veronica frowns. "Okay, what's going on?"

"Please?" he says again.

"Okay. We'll go to the room."

The elevator ride up to their twin room on the sixth floor is awkward… or at least, it feels awkward to Logan. He's not sure what Veronica is thinking right now. All he knows is that he can't carry on like this, pretending he doesn't have feelings for her, burying it all inside like it doesn't mean anything. Not after that kiss; not now that he knows what it's like to hold her in his arms, to taste her on his lips.

When they make it into the room, Veronica closes the door behind them and turns to him, crossing her arms over her chest.

"All right. Spill."

Now that they're here, Logan doesn't know where to start.

"Veronica, that kiss back there—"

"Shit, I'm sorry." She looks horrified. "I didn't think. Please tell me I haven't just ruined our friendship."

"No, that's not what I—" He stops, gathering his thoughts. "It was a good kiss. Maybe too good."

"What do you mean?" Her face screws up in bemusement, and it's kind of adorable.

He inhales deeply, then lets the breath out slowly. "Veronica… I liked it. I like _you._ And not just as my best friend."

Her eyes widen and her mouth drops open, her voice lowering to a whisper, "What?"

Logan takes a step towards her. "I have feelings for you, Veronica."

"I, um…" She swallows. "I don't know what—Shit, I just…"

He takes another step, then reaches for her hand. She lets him take it.

"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to spring this on you," he apologises, "but the last few months, seeing you with John… it made me realise how I feel about you, how much you mean to me."

"Logan, I… I don't know what to say," she stutters out. "I mean… of course, I like you. You're my best friend, it's just, I've never… I mean… wow."

"Veronica Mars at a loss for words," Logan says, in an attempt to diffuse some of the tension between them. "That's gotta be a first."

She steps away, her hand dropping from his, and sinks down onto the nearest bed, her expression shell-shocked.

"How… I mean, how long—?"

"A few months," he answers the unfinished question. "It's not like I planned to fall in love with you, Veronica. It just kind of… happened."

Her eyes snap to his, her expression unreadable. "You fell in love with me?"

"Well." He shrugs sheepishly. "Yeah."

"I can't believe this," she murmurs to herself, fingers twisting together in her lap.

"Look, I'm sorry," says Logan quickly. "I get it; you don't feel the same way and I've overstepped my bounds. If you want me to move out of the apartment, I will. As soon as we get home."

"Move out?" She looks up at him in surprise. "No."

"No?" he tries to confirm, his heart pounding.

She shakes her head, standing up and walking over to him.

"No," she confirms. "I don't want you to move out."

Her hands come up, palms flattening against his chest and Logan looks down at them in confusion.

"Veronica?"

"Shh," she murmurs softly. "I wanna see something."

"See wha—?"

He doesn't even get to finish the question before her lips are on his, kissing him softly, slowly, experimenting with it. He lets her take the lead, curbing his own desires until she deepens the kiss herself, her hands sliding around his neck, as she presses herself against him. With a barely-concealed groan, he wraps her up in his arms, holding her tight as her tongue slips into his mouth. They kiss for several long, amazing moments, until Veronica finally pulls back, breathing heavily.

"So?" Logan asks, dropping his forehead to hers.

"You're kind of an amazing kisser, you know that?"

He grins, relaxing with relief. "It has been said."

"I like you, too, Logan," she admits softly. "I'm not sure about the falling in love part yet, but I definitely wanna find out where this could go."

"Really?" His heart does a little skip.

She nods, smiling, her fingers playing with the hair at the nape of his neck. "Really."

"How do you feel about doing that right now," he asks, giving her a soft smile.

"Oh, I think I might be up for that," she replies.

"Awesome." He grins as he sweeps her up into his arms.


End file.
